1 John 4:10 – This is love; not that we loved God, but that he loved us…
A few weeks ago, our family saw our 89-year-old Father/Grandfather/Great-grandfather enter eternity. About a week before he passed away, I had the opportunity of going to his house with my guitar and singing worship songs with my mom and aunts. As we surrounded his beside echoing songs from the ages, I was not aware that I was the one who was going to leave that moment changed. Leading up to our time of singing, the Lord had been putting the song, The Blessing, on my heart. I knew that was going to be the last song I sang to him. As we ended the evening, I proceeded to sing, “The Lord bless you and keep you.” While in the middle of the first verse, the Holy Spirit began to show me what the love of the Father looks like. The lyrics of the song seared like a hot iron.
He is FOR you; He is FOR you.
In that moment, Holy Spirit showed me how limiting my love is in comparison to the Father’s. There in front of me lay a man who was totally helpless; he couldn’t do anything. He wouldn’t have been alive had it not been for other people taking care of his every need. Pap was barely breathing. One week prior to this, when he was lucid, he committed his life to Jesus. He came to a saving knowledge of Christ on his death bed – and then proceeded to just exist. My Pap hadn’t developed a prayer life or a quiet time. He hadn’t shared the Gospel with anyone or served someone else without selfish motivation. On the contrary, most of his life my Pap lived antagonistic to the things of God. He was against truth, was full of bitterness and unforgiveness, and cursed the Lord’s name time after time.
So, here’s the thing - our good Father wishes that none should perish without coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus as Lord. (2 Pet. 3:9) His love is FOR the prodigal, time after time. (Luke 15:11-32) As a good natural father, so He is FOR His children even when they cannot do anything in return. (1 John 3:1) The love of our Abba Father is beyond full human comprehension. The Holy Spirit must reveal it to us so that we can have understanding. In Ephesians 3:17-19, Paul writes, “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ..”
He is FOR you; He is FOR you, rang from my mouth as God’s truth started ringing in my heart.
Don’t get me wrong: it is not God’s heart for antagonism and apathy to define a person’s life during the entirety of their years. Yet, God’s love for mankind is not based on what we do or don’t do. His love is not a respecter of persons or platforms. While I knew this in part (in my head), this knowing became revelation in my spirit man. Lying in front of me, I saw this picture of the Father’s love. He was not just saving my Pap; He was FOR my Pap. It was a love that was active, working, and pursuing my Pap, right up until the end. Oh, how He loves us!